Hang this on your wall designers: Killer Jellyfish of Graphic Design Favors

Killer Jellyfish of Graphic Design Favors

Originally uploaded by lunchbreath

Read it. Memorize It. Eek, eek, eek.
Try to avoid the Killer Jellyfish of Graphic Design Favors. via Flickr, free.

Olympic Inspired Art For the Inner Olympian In All of Us

1972 Olympics Judo by Otl Aicher at L-Dopa Design, $360

Every four years, I get a thrill out of watching the Olympics (Summer, Winter, it doesn't matter). There's something magic about watching the nations parading in their uniforms, the best athletes competing in the world, and the sports drama that gets to me. As a designer, the sheer amount of promotion materials for the Olympics is dizzying -- merchandising, logo work, posters, etc. the list goes on and on. The designer Otl Aicher  created these Munich 1972 Olympics that are dynamic, colorful, and modern. They're excellent posters worthy of being hanged in your homes. Here's my favorites from vintage art/poster site L-Dopa Design

1972 Olympics Archery by Otl Aicher at L-Dopa Design, $420

1972 Olympics Shooting by Otl Aicher at L-Dopa Design, $350

Muji : Online Store

Lucky New Yorkers no more. Now, design-savvy Americans across the United States can check out and enjoy Muji, the upscale no-name brand that prides itself on "simplicity achieved through a complexity of thought and design." That's no bull. Muji is known to hire well-known designers, from Sam Hecht, Jasper Morrison, and Naoto Fukasawa to create products. I came across their paper stationary line in New York's MOMA gift shop and have been smitten since. Check out their online store, MUJI

See a few of their design classics below:

Look familiar? This wall-mounted CD player, designed by Naoto Fukasawa, is in the trailer for Objectified.

Cylindrical coffee maker designed by Sam Hecht.

Cardboard speakers that are lightweight and collapsible. 

Get Out the Vote!

Today is election day, probably the most historically significant political event in my generation's lifetime. Two wars, a credit crisis, tanked economy, and a DOA healthcare system -- what more can Generation Y ask for? This poster pretty much summarizes how I feel about Election 2008. Vote for change!

So, tonight, we'll all be glued to the TV, watching the CNN/MSNBC/Fox news channels count the electoral votes. In the meantime, I present to you 30 Reasons . 30 Reasons for why you should vote for Barack Obama -- 30 designers/artists build a visual response to why you should vote. New posters debuted from Oct. 5th. Fans subscribed to email lists received a daily graphic poster. This one, above, happens to be my favorite. Pretty simple, eh? 

Oct. 5th

Reason 1: Tell me it can't be true. Following 8 years of disastrous governance, the Democrats field the best candidate this country has seen in generations, against one of the worst the Republicans have ever mustered, and the media's political pundits would have us seriously contemplate more of the same. Is anyone ever going to learn?

Oct. 6th

Artist Frank Chimero of Springfield, Missouri 

www.frankchimero.com

This election gives us a rare opportunity to make a choice and commit to one of two drastically different sets of ideals. We can cower in the shadows of our problems, divide and fall, or we can band together, get to work and make a difference. This election is about one thing: Fear versus Empowerment. Please choose wisely.

Oct. 12th

Jason Kernevich & Dustin Summers of Brooklyn, New York 
www.theheadsofstate.com

Barack Obama plans to create 5 million green collar jobs, increase our country's use of alternative fuels, and stop tax breaks for the oil and gas industry. America must end its dependence on foreign oil and embrace a greener future.

Plush Kills, Kids

Remember when you cried like a baby when Bambi's mother was killed? Relive that end-to-innocence moment with Cherrybox Studio's series, PlushKill Forest. Kitschy woodland animals are memorialized, not for your (child's) bedside but instead, mounted for artistic, cute, morbidly crafted display.  If American Psycho's Patrick Bateman had offspring, somehow, I think this would be a perfect fit. Pick your prey: unicorns, goats, rabbits, mouses, oh my.

 PlushKill Forest , $80 at Cherrybox Studios 

Ork's Seattle Poster in the works

Apartment Therapy 's documenting Ork Poster's design of the next city poster: Seattle! First, New York, Chicago, San Francisco...now its my new home's turn to shine. Through AT, Ork is soliciting feedback on the neighborhood mapping of the Emerald City. Is your 'hood represented?

Getting Carded and Looking Pretty While Doing So

Current Loving: Red Cap cards as illustrated by Carrie Gifford and Francesca Montanari. 

Who doesn't enjoy a greeting card in the mailbox? Evites and e-cards are trés passé, hardly inviting much thought and consideration compared to a handwritten, stamped note. I suppose that's why I keep my mailed greeting cards and delete those e-cards. My personal favorite is receiving cards that are artfully illustrated, perfect for framing if one's in need of decorative artwork (see my Yoshitomo Nara project).
So, to commemorate that, I wanted to share my latest greeting card find: Red Cap Cards.

If you love these Tim Burtonseque cards, seen above, you would love Carrie Gifford's illustrations. Sweet and eccentric, her cards would be a delight to deliver to whimsical friends.

Wanting something a little more delicate? Francesca Montanari delivers illustrations with a beautifully melancholic atmosphere that leave a lingering impression. 

Riding in Style: Dutch Bicycles

 A girl can dream right? How can you not see yourself cycling on the streets with this beauty of a bike? The back-rack allows you to stash your books-groceries-etc. and jaunt off to your next urban destination in style...Paris, Amsterdam, London, and Copenhagen, is that you I see in my future? A throwback to a glamorous era, the Oma is made by the Dutch Bike Co. of Seattle.

Oma bicycle, $1589 at the Dutch Bike Co. of Seattle

Like I said, a girl can dream right? Sigh. Europeans are spoiled when it comes to old-school, beautifully designed bicyles. This totally beats the Huffy I rode back in the day. 

Be Frugal, Green and Stylish: I am not a paper cup

Do you find it hard trying to save cash by kicking that coffee habit? Can't stand your supermarket's selection on portable coffee cups? Want to reduce your carbon footprint with sustainable, trendy drinking habits? Product designer, James Burgess, has an eco-friendly solution for you: "I am not a paper cup" is a re-usable ceramic solution to the waste generated by those store bought coffee cups. The cup's clean, minimal design does the job with no fuss. Made of two layers of porcelain, it'll keep your bev hot without scalding you. Plus, unlike plastic cups, it won't retain odd odors. This is a perfect solution for me (I suffered from a bad Starbucks/McD's coffee habit). Brewing coffee from home, I can redeem the cost of this cup within a few weeks.
Art world recognition: "I am not a paper cup" has been featured in the gift shop of the New York MoMa store.

I am not a paper cup, $20 at A+R

Fly Like Paper

Real or fake? This is guerrilla-style origami fun in action. London-based artist, Martin Postler, created this subversively dark DIY art project, the Paper AK47 kit. Putting the pieces together, the DIYer can appreciate the beauty of the design separate from its function.
According to the product description: "Part of Postlerferguson’s Death Machine series, the Paper AK-47 was glittered, graffiti’d and garnished by respected street artists for the well-received Paper Wars exhibit in London this summer." 
Hmm. I did some digging and found snapshots of the Paper Wars exhibit. The other paper byproducts are breathtaking for their meticulous reconstruction in paper. See the AK-47 below:

Paper AK-47 Kit, $42, at A+R Store

Oh, the places you will go

What a difference a year makes. Blogging wise, dearly devoted has celebrated its one-year anniversary! It did so in May but I'm only reflecting now with the major changes happening soon. This year, I got out of my metaphysical limbo, applied to grad school, and quit my job to make the move.



So, what does it mean, dear readers? I'm picking up my bags to move to Seattle! So, next week I'll be driving cross-country. In the meantime, I've been playing with Wordle, a web app that crates graphic, textual art based on reader submitted text or link. Wordle will create a visual word cloud based on randomness or frequency. Above, I entered a list of cities I've traveled or intend to. Can you guess which ones I've visited and the ones I'm itching to go next? My inspiration came from Ork's City Neighborhood posters, seen below.

Check out the results that Wordle generated when I entered dearly devoted's website:

You can customize the color, font choice, and layout to make it how you like. For a graphic geek like myself this is a fun, cheap thrill.

Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto

Think you've had enough cute knicknacks for your office desktop? Think again. For robot fetishists and pencil pushers, the Walking Robot Pencil Sharpener is perfect for display and usage. By sharpening your pencil, you also power up Mr. Roboto to march to your own beat. Nice.



Walking Robot Pencil Sharpener, $6, at ThinkGeek

Black Knight spotted

"It's just a flesh wound!" - Black Knight, Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Caught over at Abbey Goes Design Scouting, this medieval Black Knight stitched plush toy is bound to charm you. Created by artisans, Friederike, Jaques de Molay and his horse Josephine are happily pictured above. View their website for more intricately detailed crafted toywork.

The cute OUCH box

From a design standpoint, the first-aid cross is iconic and appealing. In its Swiss form, white on red, this sturdy medicine box has me falling in love with it. Isn't it so nostalgic? Its retro feel reminds me of WWII industrial design: remember those old metal lunch boxes?
It combines classic design and functionality that will actually find some use in my house.
Seen over at SwissMiss. Medicine Box, VINCON

Japanese Package Design Spotlight

How dear are these matchsticks cases? Talk about cute design work. I love that the mini-face sketches are dotted on the matchsticks. Japanese package design work spotted at my latest blog-read at graphic design blog, The Dieline. 

Too Cool For Plastic Bags

Tired of the trendy, hipster statement shopping bags (I'm looking at you, I AM NOT A PLASTIC BAG) that fashion blogs have been pushing for Earth Day? Want to adopt a more sardonic, rakish stance with your farmer's co-op grocery stash? Karmaloop is offering these bewilderingly adorable cotton totes by Insight. What does a sun-shaded donkey (an homage to Risky Business) say about you? Or, a pirate-eyed kitty? At 14in. x 14in, these roomy totes can stash a mini laptop. The Oreo Donkey Tote, above, and The Oreo Cat Tote, below at $25.

Chill with Skull & Cross Bones

These Bone Chillers are perfect for getting your inner Pirate or Ghoul on. Why should they have all the fun? Yes, I know, it's not Halloween but isn't it slightly villainish? If you're going to be bad, might as well do it with style---even into your kitchen decor. If I was bloodthirsty Viking, I'd enjoy munching these icy remains as if they were the bones of my enemies.
Bone Chillers from Urban Outfitters, $8.

In Love with Anatomy 101

Doesn't this latest design bring back fond, morbid memories of Biology 101? Growing up in South Florida, I see a variety of roadkill, frogs especially, but nothing grossed me out more then dissecting the green amphibians in high school. Urgh, you knew somebody hit jackpot with a female specimen when its scalped guts revealed a nest of black eggs inside. Urgh. Still, somebody definitely enjoyed their anatomical studies because CraftyHedgehog designed this cozy creation, Knitting in Biology 101, available for custom order on Etsy.  Or, if you're into DIY, you can also buy her pattern.

Look at her cute attention to detail below:

Aww, it's like totally dead. Love the cartoony, crossed-out eyes. With a nicely mounted frame, I think this would be an excellent gift for a pre-med or science-major friend--natch that--a fun addition to my own decor. 

Or, if you're into this new trend of anatomically-correct designs, check out the hearts below, plushy and metal sculpture. 

Next up, this big (literally) 6”x8.5” Heart Plush from I Heart Guts, $18. Gotta dig the company name. Browsing their website, they also have in stock (I'm not joking): gallbladder, uterus, kidney, lung, brain, and more. Lovely! 

For classier gents and ladies, we have pewter hearts, blackened or gilded (14k gold), depending on your mood and sentiments. These babies measure 5" x 3.5" x 1". Pewter Anatomical Heart is available at Michele Varian. Hefty. I'd love to have this in my office. 

Tokidoki Wall Art & Visual Displays

Hotel Fox, Rm 204. tokidoki World

I've known about tokidoki for the last few years but didn't pay much mind. Cutesy but the fashionable accessories its spawned was too busy, too much. However, I DO love the graphic appeal of the toy line and tech products (more iPod skins please!).

BUT -- I think the best part about tokidoki is their visual collaborations and merchandising. At large scale, the graphic artwork becomes sheer eye candy for me. It just pops! I could probably stare at the walls happily for hours. It's a great inspiration to see the Japanese kawaii style has had on its designer, Simone Legno. He's created his own distinctive style and has made it into a commercial enterprise, like Takashi Murakami. I wish he did more gallery pieces, though.

tokidoki has a section dedicated to their collaborations here.

visual merchandise store display

Pool Trade Show?! A very stylish choice from a marketing perspective. I love this giant graffiti poster they've affixed to the wall.

Hotel Fox, Rm 212. Japanese Garden

From the Pool Trade Show, here's what the booth girls wore for the tokidoki stall. I want that jacket!

Twisted Valentine's Day Gift

We get it, Valentine's Day is a bad time for the singletons and the broken hearted.
Well, project your dark thoughts on to the aptly named product above, The Ex Knife Set as designed by Raffaele Iannello. Thoughtfully included are the five knives shown above, it's just just for show! This knife holder, in a cheerful fire-engine red, stokes my love for the morbid. Someone in need of closure? Buy this for that friend! As the product info discloses: "This set makes a great gift for any occasion and it's also considerably cheaper than therapy."
The Ex Knife Set, $69, Think Geek